Bachelor Nation is reeling from the rumors that Bachelor in Paradise contestant Abigail Heringer might have been involved in Clare Crawley and Dale Moss' most recent breakup. Clare and Dale split up in late September after months of separating and reuniting. The two met in Clare's season of The Bachelorette when she ended the show early by choosing Dale as her true love.
Clare and Dale met and fell in love at first sight in her season, which began in mid-July 2020. After knowing him for just 12 days, Clare decided to leave with Dale, and the couple got engaged on the show. They then began a relationship in the real world. In January of 2021, the couple broke off their engagement after hitting a rough patch, but they reunited in February. In April, Clare began wearing her ring again, and they shared many pictures of each other on Instagram throughout the summer. In July, they celebrated their one-year anniversary. However, in September, they broke up again, due to conflicts over getting married and where they would live. In the meantime, Abigail appeared in Matt James' season of The Bachelor and most recently as a contestant on Bachelor in Paradise, during which she was involved in a rocky relationship with Noah Erb.
According to Us Weekly, Abigail may have played a role in Clare and Dale's split. Two days after announcing her breakup with Dale, Clare posted a photo on Instagram of herself holding hands with her mother, who is currently in hospice care. In a lengthy caption, she stated that she was choosing not to speak about her relationship with Dale right now and that anyone can put on an act to form a narrative that suits them. She concluded the post saying that actions speak for themselves. Curiously, she tagged Abigail in this post. Supposedly, Dale and Abigail had a fling at some point when he and Clare were apart. A source told Us Weekly that they had hooked up long before Bachelor in Paradise and that Abigail revealed this to many of her friends since she “was under the impression that he and Clare weren’t serious” anymore. The insider claimed that Clare found out about this from the online rumors and tagged Abigail in her photo to prove to everyone that she knew what happened. Abigail later untagged herself.
However, according to Us Weekly, a second source close to Dale claimed that he was never involved with Abigail. The source stated, "They met once at flag football in New York City that a bunch of Bachelor people attended. Everyone went to a bar after. They did not sleep together. He’s never cheated on Clare. They never kissed or had sex. Dale is friends with Abigail and her boyfriend." Fans are questioning why Clare would tag Abigail in her post if the news was not true.
As fans of Bachelor in Paradise are wondering if Abigail and Noah are still together outside of the show, this news comes as a curveball that may complicate things further. Whether it turns out to be true remains to be seen, but Clare publicly calling out Abigail by tagging her in that post seems to indicate that Clare has information that fans will soon find out about too.
Bachelor in Paradise airs Tuesdays at 8pm on ABC.
Sources: Us Weekly, Clare Crawley/Instagram